Clouds restoration
by RedXIII's-Inferno
Summary: After meteor, Cloud left the group to travel the world but when he returns a new evil has emerged. One that'll take great effect on Cloud and others in the group. Will he be able to handle it, and where will this leave the group?Chap.8 up! plz R
1. arrival to Kalm

It was a cold day at Midgar but he couldn't feel it as he was too busy thinking. It has been over 1 year since the incident crater and just as long since he left the group. He had went with them the day after holy had collided with meteor to visit Aeris and he felt happy, he didn't know why but when he went to the lake he smiled. Maybe he smiled for Aeris, and that her death wasn't in vain, he knew now that she died for the planet after using holy, that the only way for Holy to work was for the user to become one with the planet. And he knew that he had avenged her death with the defeat of Sephiroth. But whatever it was he didn't care, she was dead and he couldn't do anything about it, all he could do was move on. All he knew was that she wouldn't want him to be lonely forever.  
  
But his mind wasn't on that, he was going to Kalm to visit the crew, he has had little to no contact with them since the day he left and the only contact he had was with Vincent, whom he only bumped into at Fort Condor, and Vincent isn't much to talk to. He's always been mysterious and didn't tell them much, but then again no-one ever asked him about his past. Despite that he was a decent guy, although when he got real mad he would show his true side, not some-one you'd want to meet in an alley after dark. He thought about Barret, he's one crazy guy; he'd take a fit at you for the silliest reasons. Always angry, except when around Marlene, she's the only one that keeps Barret sane.  
  
Cid married Shera one week after meteor and rarely left rocket town, even the rest of the group had little contact with him, RedXII returned to cosmos canyon and he stayed there, in the wild, he hunted for a while alone and then encountered more of his kind living inside the ancient forest, he stayed there and raised a family with a light red female called Ninaka, and is one of the happiest people in the group.  
  
Yuffie went to Wutai and started a shop were she sold what she found (or stole) on the journey but when she sold out she went to help Tifa in the bar in Kalm. Tifa, He knew Tifa since he was a child and grew up with her, he didn't have the best relatiosnship with her back then because the other kids hanged around with her and they really didn't like him. But whenever she was alone, which was on the rare occasion, he would still not talk to her, he hated to see her alone or unhappy but he was unsure what to do. He always wanted to comfort her through those moments in time but when he seen her, alone, he just stood there, looking at her.  
  
A cold blast blew over him and drove him out of his daydream, the wind whistled past his ear and through his blonde hair. It caused him to tense as he realized he was standing over a cliff, just above Kalm. He was to meet everyone in Tifa's bar. From were he was standing he couldn't see anything in detail. But the occasional blur of people as they walked up and down the street. Kalm has gotten a lot bigger since he was last there, although he hasn't been there for a year. Despite the size and location it still didn't look like a tourist location. It could well be a successful tourist attraction, lots of room and a traditional look; it would make people feel like they are visiting a bit of history. With Midgar not so far away the comparison was completely different.  
  
He started to head down the side of the cliff towards Kalm, holding onto the surface with his feet and pushing his way down, he could feel the roots in his hands as he made his way. It wasn't a large cliff; if he jumped it probably wouldn't hurt him. He has fallen from larger heights and got away with little but a bruise but honestly he was tired. He had spent the day walking, through the mines and over the swamp, and he jus wanted to lie down. When he got down he started again towards Kalm.  
  
His mind was drifting again, was he ready to see his friends again, and was he ready to settle down. Some of his favorite memories were on the battlefield, his most loyal companions, the ultimate-weapon and his materia, and his valiant steed, the highwind. That was, of course, until he crashed it. It wasn't his fault really, that island wasn't on the map so there was no way for him to have known it was there. He just likes flying on top of the sea so that the water splashes up and mist travels along the side of the ship. He only got back to mainland by way of chocobo, his gold stallion. He's sure Cid won't mind. He swallowed his guilt, Cid would mind the only thing he cared more than the Highwind was Shera, and that was because he wouldn't be allowed to marry a ship, if he hadn't already known that he probably would have tried.  
  
He thought about settling in Kalm, but he couldn't imagine staying in one place for more than a week. He was always looking for reasons to go, as if the planet was asking him to ensure its safety as he once did. Since his encounter the lifestream he felt closer to the planet. As if he was one with it, like Aeris was. Most people who come in contact with the lifestream usually come out permanently damaged in some way. But he managed to come out pure. He felt renewed. But he will settle, all he needs is help, Tifa lives in Kalm and runs a Bar. He could stay with her, she wouldn't mind, after all he is her childhood friend. But he wasn't sure is he was her friend; sometimes he would feel closer to her than just a friend. He always had feelings for her but he was never sure how she felt. He wasn't sure how he felt either, were these feelings just a search for a close friend or a partner. He wouldn't ask anyway because he feared she'd say no, and there long-term friendship would be over like that, as the words rolled of her tongue his heart would shatter and he'd probably leave to travel the world again, without ever returning. And at the moment he was happy so he didn't need to risk it, at least not now.  
  
He could feel the ground underneath him as he walked along, the shoes he wore were just leather, and although they allowed for better movement, they were a real discomfort. His jeans were held up by a studded belt which flared up at the bottom, and he's wearing a sleeveless black, turtleneck jumper with his sword hanging down his back. As he reached the path he could see the entrance to the town, the townsfolk scuttling around. For a peaceful town the folks are real stimulated. The bar isn't to far away from the entrance and at a good pace you could get there in less than a minute, but he took his time, he wanted to prepare for the reunion, and he wasn't sure if he wanted to be back. 


	2. The Reunion Of The Group

He took his step in to the bar to see the smiles of his friends looking back at him, smiles on there faces.  
  
"Welcome back!" most of them shouted towards him, attracting the attention of most of the bar, and slightly embarrassing him. "Good to see you again, pal" Barret said, giving him a pat on the back with his new robotic hand, which he returned. "You to, buddy" he said. Then Cid wandered over, sat on the nearest table and grinned widely at him. Cloud took a seat at the table they were at and Cid said," So... where'd you park the High wind? Well? We didn't see it coming in, did she handle like a beauty, I bet she did?" Cloud could feel the guilt rise again, and droplets of sweat form on his head. "Leave that till later, he's jus returned and I'm sure he'd rather tell us what's been going on in his life than talk about a stupid ship, ain't that right Cloudy?" Yuffie said as she set a drink in front of him and sat down resting her elbows on the table and her face on her hands, saving him from replying. "Um... yeah, right." "So then where'd ya go, huh? Tell me everything, I miss our little adventures, did ya bring me something back, huh?" Yuffie burst out, staggering him for words. "Well it would take hours to tell you everywhere and everything I did, and I did get you something, but I'll give it to ya later, k" Cloud said as he smiled at her, 17 and as energetic as ever. He felt something brush up against him, "Yo, RedXII how's the family" He said, stroking his main, "They're fine, cubs are well." He said, purring. "How ya been", "fine, fine".  
  
"Hey," he felt a hand on his neck as she spun round the table to her seat in front of him, her chocolate hair tossed over her shoulder. Her smile threw him speechless, her face was exactly the way he remembered it (although he really never stopped thinking about her), her eyes a deep brown, so deep he got lost in them for a moment and her figure perfect in everyway. She was his childhood friend and memories; his past was quite plain, he could barely remember anything but her, his life only got better when he met her again, in Tifa's seventh heaven, in the slums under Midgar. She was happy then, and she's happy now. Cloud pushed a smile to his face, "Hi, how's business", "Oh. Fine, fine." She said looking down to her hands as they settled around her cup of coffee. "You look healthy, been training recently?" she asked, looking him up. "Ah... yea, don't want to be out of shape, do I?" he replied, looking down at his own mug. "We all missed you" she said, with sincerity in her voice. "I missed you all too." He replied, scanning the faces, they hadn't changed much since last time he seen them. They were all there, Barret, Cid, Yuffie, RedXIII, Tifa, and then his cerulean eyes caught Vincent's face, who noticed and remembered he hadn't said anything.  
  
"Welcome back." He said, uncomfortably, he wasn't used to spreading emotions. "Vince! Nice to meet you again" he said as he looked at the dark figure standing stern and upright, and he reaching out to take his hand. Now he felt at home, everyone was there and they were all happy. He was happy; he wasn't looking for a reason to stay. He found it and it was is friends, it has been well too long since last time he seen them and he didn't like that, sure he liked the journeys he had but it would make it better, magical, if his friends had accompanied him through them. But they had no reason to, they had went with him to the crater, but only because the life of the planet and everything that lived on it. They wouldn't scan the world with him for any reason. "Uncie Cloud!" He felt a tug at his arm and turned to see Marlene, "hey, how ya been, little lady" he said as he lifted her to sit on his lap.  
  
After he finished talking to them, and when the bar closed, he left with the others, but Tifa as she lives above the bar, to get a room at the nearest hotel. He ended up with a room with Barret, not that he minded sharing a room with a Mad, ill-tempered and on the edge of insanity man, but he snores. Cloud always found it hard to sleep, except when with Tifa. She always looked peaceful; she slept silently and never seemed to be worried about anything. When he slept around her he felt her tranquility radiating of her. He liked to be around Tifa when she was like that. He always stayed up late, so when he glanced over at her, he smiled, not like he watched her as she slept, but it was hard for him not to. Her beauty was too astounding to ignore. He wasn't the only one who believed it, when they were young she was always surrounded by the boys of the town. He knew she liked being around him, but she would rather be with a group of people than just Cloud. His mind started wandering and soon he was in a complete trance, he wasn't tired that night but he drifted off real easy, despite the distracting snores of the giant in the other bed. 


	3. The Dream

Note: REVIEW! Hwo do I know you read it if ya don't review. (**T**o**T**)(me crying) review!

The blue glare from his eyes put Cloud in a wash; he found it hard to concentrate. The area started to spin, the mountains around him changed to a dark red and the sensation of heat rushing up his back. His feet pulled out from underneath him as the ground shattered and crumbled into the fiery keep. The stench of brimstone on his nostrils made him light headed and faint.  
  
He felt his arms move up his sides and grip the handle of his blade, stirring without thought. He couldn't think, he couldn't move his hands, or any other part of his body he couldn't concentrate on moving. He didn't want to move but he couldn't stop it, he felt his grip tighten round the grip. His mind went crazy, the image in his eyes were flicking. An image of Hades home, flames flickering up round his chest. Then an image of the crater, after the incident, with dense snow raining on top of his head, settling on the ground in deep layers.  
  
An image of blood dripping off his blade and freezing half way down, leaving crimson indents in the snow, he looked up to see the dark features of a hooded figure in front of him smiling, but he couldn't make up the face of the character. Then, with a quick flick, a long barreled pistol was aimed at his chest, a slight laugh from the throat. He looked at the weapon, the finger, itching to pull the trigger, muttering words which he couldn't make out. He then seen the trigger glide back, the bullet released from the cartridge and the gun-powder's flash, that made him force his eyes shut. But he didn't hear the noise, nor feel the impact, in fact he didn't feel the snow hit his face, and he didn't feel cold.  
  
He opened his eyes, it was dark, but he could see a ceiling above him. He was lying down. He turned to look around; beads of sweat ran across his forehead and onto, his pillow. He had been dreaming. He looked over at Barret, he was asleep. He sat up to wonder about the dream. He had this dream before, except he for the cloaked man, he was new to this recurring dream. Cloud found it hard to sleep that night.  
  
When the sun came up Cloud was already awake, in fact, he hadn't slept since his dream, and was dressed and ready for action. He was in the garden, sparring with Barret. His blade gripped in his hand as he tried to dodge the clips Barret was unloading at him. His blade did little but stand in front of him and take most of the shots, while Cloud had some practice at his reaction time, phenomenal as it is. When Barret was done with his onslaught, he shifted his blade and lunged at Barret, taking him as surprise while he was reloading, hu swung the blade with force, and as fast as his arms would allow him to swing a blade so large, and of such load, stopping within an inch of Barret's neck.  
  
"Checkmate!" Cloud said, raising a smirk at Barret's reaction.  
  
"CHECKMATE! How the hells that checkmate, ya spiky haired ape!" Barret replied, still holding onto his empty clip.  
  
Cloud let out a sigh as he sheathed his blade. "I could have killed you on that split second, then where would ya have been"  
  
"I'll tell ya where a woulda bin, I woulda bin letting this clip empty inta ya chest, that's where a woulda bin," Barret Growled.  
  
"You would have been dead, actually"  
  
"Would I have, Would I? Well you didn't perhaps think, perhaps that I had a revive materia handy, did ya" Barret rebuked.  
  
"Quit arguing, will you. Barret, face it, you haven't been training recently, have you, so cloud would have an upper hand from the start. Right!" Tifa interrupted, with a tone of anger in her voice. "Besides, it Clouds first day back, we don't won't him leaving already, do we?" she continued, looking at him and smiling.  
  
"Guess not" he murmured, just low enough for Tifa to hear it,  
  
Tifa always seemed to stick up for him, the majority of the time he was right anyway, but even back when they were young in Nebelheim, and all the kids were around Tifa, those kids would mock and ridicule Cloud, but Tifa stood up for him, and they would stop.  
  
Barret glanced at Cloud with a look of victory on his face, Cloud turned away from him smiling and shaking his head.  
  
"Where's the breakfast, I'm starving," Yuffie grumbled  
  
"Quit ya yapping, kid, you can't expect to be waitered on han' an' foot, can ya. Go make it yer'self, stop forcing others to do ya chores." Cid snarled at her.  
  
"Well sorry, mister grumpy," Yuffie replied, getting up from her seat an heading to the fridge.  
  
Vincent was just standing there with his back against the wall in the shade, and RedXII was prowling around the same area, which seemed to make Vince uncomfy. Vincent always liked to be separate from the group, he never liked the company. When his wife, Lucrecia, died, he went to sleep, planning to never re-awaken. But when Cloud and the others woke him, he followed them on there journey as a thank-you. But Vince never expected to make friends with them, and he still found it hard to be with them.  
  
RedXII found it easy however. Still a teen in his species and the oldest in the group. RedXII always made friends easily, think of a dog, lots of people love dogs, RedXII resembled a dog, a large, red, vicious, attack dog, but a dog none the less.  
  
The sky started to darken again as a large mist covered the city, so sudden and unexpected, it got cold swiftly and small petals of snow started to drift down. Cloud Got a flash back of his dream, the wind shifting his hair over his face, making it hard for him to see. He felt a warm hand wrap round his waist, Tifa had snuggled up to him for warmth. Cloud looked down at her and then slowly moved one of his hands on her shoulder, to reassure her that he was there, that she had nothing to fear.  
  
"We've had this type of weather a lot recently" Tifa whispered to him, with a formal tone.  
  
"I know, we should get inside, don't want to freeze." Cloud exclaimed, slightly worried.  
  
Cloud turned round to head to the bar to see a dark figure walk towards him, he started to sweat, which didn't help due to the cold weather. Cloud reached for his sword as the figure moved towards him.  
  
Clouds eyes shifted, he was looking for confirmation of the sinister form lurking towards him, he gripped both fists on the handle, letting go of Tifa and unsheathing his blade to settle in front of him in battle stance. Cloud didn't know how he felt, or how he should have felt. The figure moved just into view and stopped, Cloud's grip suddenly loosened on the handle, the end of the blade falling to bounce off the ground.


	4. the plan

Note: Plz review, reviews are nice, one is depressing **: (**

The figure moved just into view and stopped, Cloud's grip suddenly loosened on the handle, the end of the blade falling to bounce off the ground.  
  
"Hurry up, you two, it's getting cold, everyone's inside" Vincent said as he emerged from the white-out" .... why is your weapon in your hand?"  
  
"Oh, ahh, forget it, I jus', I got carried away, it came so sudden, you know." Cloud said, slightly embarrassed from the situation.  
  
"Well sheath it and hurry up." Vince exclaimed in a monotonous voice.  
  
"Ri... Right, well be right there." He replied, as he turned to hold Tifa's hand, which she kindly allowed him to, caressing his hand with her thumb and quickly moving up beside him, as he led her to her bar.  
  
"What the hell took you two so long," said Barret, slightly aggravated then noticing them holding hands. "Ahh, you were making out" he said with a smirk.  
  
"What! No, no he was jus helping me through the snow, that's all, right Cloud" Tifa exclaimed.  
  
"Yeah, jus', jus' helping her to the bar, that's all." He said as his eyes twitched from Tifa to Barret, checking if he believed him.  
  
"Yea right Cloud, we know you have feelings for Teef. Ain't that right Vincy" Yuffie interrupted leaning across the counter towards them  
  
"Uhh, I'd find this conversation irritating and would not like to be brought into it, and, please, don't call me Vincy, be civilized." Vincent said, looking slightly awkward to the attention he was getting.  
  
"Well I sure as hell noticed it." Cid said, waving a cigarette at them. "Yer still holcing her han' " he smugly said as he slouched back in his chair.  
  
Strife, noticing this let his grip on Tifa's hand loosen, her hand slipping out of his. His face was red from embarrassment  
  
"Leave them be, I think we have bigger problems than that." RedXII exclaimed, his voice slightly rough. "This weather isn't like this for no reason, I can feel it. Something is disturbing to natural meteorology of the planet, and its not a natural disturbance. Something, or someone, is doing this, and I think we should do something about this, agreed?"  
  
"Hey, why the hell is it always up to us to sort out this shit!" Barret exclaimed, his fists clenched by his sides.  
  
"Calm down Barret, it won't take us long to sort it out anyway, we have the highwin' ta take us to the source quickly, right Cloud." Cid blurted out, trying to keep a straight face as he looked at him.  
  
Cloud didn't know what to say but he knew he had to tell them now. "Well you see, I sorta don't have the highwind with me." He muttered, looking at his feet.  
  
"you...what..." cid said as he looked dumbstruck, Cigarette falling from his lips. "well, well where... where is it then..."  
  
Cloud could sense Cid's heart was broke, he didn't mean to crash it. Cid spent half his life on building the highwind and going to space so Cloud knew that the truth would hurt him. "well I crashed it" he said as he prepared for cid to hurl stuff at him.  
  
"Well, Well can I not repair it, I built that ship, I know it inside out. I... I could repair it, where is it?" Cid breathed out, his voice hanging on to every word.  
  
"It lies at the bottom of the sea." Cloud mumbled, then raised his head to look at Cid, Cloud never seen cid look like this before, his eyes were wide, tears forming underneath them. The full grown man was about to cry over a crashed ship, he had fought with them, through heaven and hell, he had defeated the mighty Sephiroth alongside the rest of them. He witnessed meteor collide with holy, just before it destroyed the planet, and he never once shed anything that even remotely resembled a tear.  
  
"I see." Cid said, dropping his head. A shimmer of light reflecting of a tear as it ran down his nose and fell to the ground.  
  
Cloud immediately hung his head in shame, he didn't like to see Cid like this, Cid was a strong guy.  
  
"Don't look so gloomy, Cid, we don't need the highwind anywho, do we?" Yuffie blurted out, looking to support Cid through it.  
  
"Nah, we don't need it, we explored the majority of the land before we got the highwind last time." Barret established. "Cid, you ok?"  
  
"Sorry" Cloud said, he couldn't think of anything else to say. "it was purely an accident."  
  
"Yea, I know you didn't mean to, I can't hold it against you, it was, it was jus a ship, a... a chunk a metal. Nothing else."  
  
"Cid cheer up, your happy now anyway, you were doing so well without it as Cloud had it. How would you feel if Shera seen you like this" Tifa said  
  
"so we'll start tomorrow, will we?" RedXII exclaimed, avoiding Cid's state.  
  
"We don't know where to start, where would we go?" Vincent pointed out.  
  
"Well" Cloud said, grabbing the attention of everyone. "We could start at the north crater."  
  
"An' why ta hell would we start there, I don't wanna hell go back there!" Barret shouted. His voice quivered at the thought.  
  
"Well, it seems the logical choice, that's were the evil was breeding when we first journeyed. There may still be sin lurking there." Cloud said, "plus, plus I've had recurring nightmares taking place in that area." He said, turning to look at Vince, who seemed to realize that the incident outside referred to that.  
  
"So then, to the Northern-Crater!" Tifa said to everyone, but focusing on Cloud. He didn't seem to notice. "Everyone can stay here tonight" the bar's shut tomorrow since it's Saturday, so its ok for you to sleep down here."  
  
Most of that day was spent revolving around the dream, Cloud helped behind the counter at the bar with Tifa and Yuffie. And when it got late he helped tidy up and close the bar.  
  
They set up there sleeping bags and sat talking till it got late and everyone decided that it was time to get sleep, although none of them really wanted tomorrow to come and leave there loved ones again, but Cloud as he would be with his loved ones and exploring the world like he wanted to...


	5. The Perfect Night

Note: reviews plz, they're nice **:) **also, someone asked, is this a Yuffitine. don't know. I like yuffitines an' all, but the guy is eleven or so years older than her and he's undead, jus' seems spooky if ya ask me.

The lights were out but Cloud was alert. He couldn't get to sleep, in fact, he didn't want to sleep. Cloud didn't want to have that nightmare again. He felt that if he had the nightmare one more time it would be more detailed, vivid, he already hated the thought.  
  
Why was he having these, why was it that every time he had the dream it got more realistic. Clouds thoughts wandered, was it to do with the weather, were they going back to hells gates just because one person was tormented by these horrendous images.  
  
What annoyed him the most was that he had no clue what the dream meant. Who was the man with the cloak, why did he shoot at him, and why was there blood on his blade. Why could he not control himself when he knew he was about to get shot.  
  
Cloud leaned back on his stool as he swirled a drink in his hand, he was worried about misleading the group.  
  
Cloud looked down at his glass, he wasn't a big drinker, but he thought that he could do with a heavy drink tonight. His head started to throb; he got up and stared around the room.

Everyone was asleep and he wasn't going to start bothering them, they were about to embark on another journey and they needed their sleep. Cloud slowly walked towards the door, making sure he didn't wake anyone up, everyone was fast asleep anyway.  
  
He opened the door making sure that it didn't disturb the others. The stars were like tiny crystals, shimmering in the distance, explosions of such devastation would make a people on a planet trillions of miles away so happy,  
  
The sky was a marine blue and Cloud could hear the trains in Midgar as they left the slums. He went to the edge of the town that was parallel to the beach and sat on the only bench. Cloud liked the night air, it always seemed fresher when it was dark. He sat and looked at the waves as the crashed against the rocks.  
  
He liked to see the waves collide with the cliffs. Cloud always viewed the waves as a plucky spirited army fight towards an undefeatable foe. That the legion would not give up, even though all their attempts looked like they were in vain. Till the cliff erodes away and gives into the mass that was its downfall.  
  
Cloud heard a slight dull sound as someone sat beside him. But Cloud didn't look, he was still lost in the waves.  
  
A hand gripped itself around his which caused Cloud to look over.  
  
"hey" Tifa whispered as she looked in his eyes. Cloud smiled at her, then turned his head back to the waves.  
  
"hey" Cloud replied, feeling a little more easy. "What are you doing up?"  
  
"I heard you leave so I came to see were you were going."  
  
"Thanks" Cloud said. He always liked it when Tifa did things like this, it cheered him up. "Did I wake you up"  
  
"No, no" she said, moving closer to him and resting her head on his shoulder. "I was already up."  
  
Cloud knew she was lying, but he was still grateful for her being there. He let go of her hand and put his arm round her, pulling her in.  
  
"Why are you out here anyway?" she muttered, eyes closed and half asleep.  
  
"I can't sleep" he replied, looking at her, he didn't know why she came out, he could only assume that she wanted to be around him. A grin cam to his face as he remembered the night he was with her at the crater.  
  
"hmm." she forced out, before she fell asleep.  
  
"Goodnight." He said as he moved a lock of hair from her face and kissed her on the forehead.  
  
He pulled her on his lap and rested her in his arms like he would a baby. The sound of a train whistle in the background rumbled through the night.  
  
He looked up at the sky to see the stars again, infinitesimal in size but infinite in beauty. He looked down at Tifa again, cradled in his arms, and he couldn't think of a more perfect night.  
  
His eyes wandered back to the battalion forcing its might to the cliff. The mist as it rose from the war, like the blood of the defeated, like crystals of azure tossed in the air.  
  
When the sun started to rise he headed back to the bar, Tifa in his embrace.  
  
He brought her back up to her room, he wasn't sure if he should go in, she never invited him in, but he didn't want to wake her up. Making sure he had a grip on her he opened the door and walked in, looked around swiftly and set her on her bed. He kissed her on her forehead again and turned to walk away.  
  
"Cloud?" he heard as he turned.  
  
"Yeah." He replied, rotating to look at her.  
  
"Don't leave, stay here. Lie down with me, please." She said looking up at him, her auburn eyes twinkled like the stars he stared at, longing to touch. It would have been difficult for him to resist, if he tried.  
  
"Ok," he said, slightly uneasy. "It's nearly morning now anyway." He said as he slipped over to her side.  
  
"You can lie under the blanket, if you want, we're both dressed." she said, eyes glazed over as she looked at him.  
  
"Ok" he replied, setting the blanket over him. She moved her body so that she was flat up beside him, her arms wrapped round his neck, her head resting up at his.  
  
Cloud simply put one arm round her as he looked up at the ceiling. He didn't know how to feel, she was beautiful, she could do better than him. He could feel her tender skin up at his and knew that she was asleep again. Her gently breath against his neck made him feel soft. He slowly fell asleep to her rhythm of her respiration.


	6. Leaving Kalm

Cloud awoke to Tifa's movements beside him, he knew see was awake but he didn't want to disturb her. Cloud looked over at her, strands of brown hair cover her face. He felt like he was sleeping on a bed of feathers, he felt lucky for Tifa to have such a comfy bed to go to each night. Cloud was glad to be back in a normal bed, he was always sleeping in a tent in the middle of nowhere.  
  
Cloud slowly got up and headed out the door to the bar where everyone else slept.  
  
"Where were ya?" Barret said in a secure tone. He was sitting with the rest at a table, all of which were looking up at him, slight smirk alone each face.  
  
"Uh, Bathroom, why?" Cloud pushed through his lips, a white lie never hurt.  
  
"No reason." Barret whispered, looking down at his cereal bowl in front of him "sleep well?"  
  
"Dandy" he replied, frustrated. He knew they weren't telling him something. "Why the sudden interest, Barret" he asked as he reached for a bowl and cereal.  
  
"Jus', wit yer nightmares an' all that." Barret said, sensing the frustration in his voice.  
  
Cloud poured a bowl and sat beside Yuffie at the table. "Is Teefy up yet, Cloud?" She said to him, smirking while she said it.  
  
"How should I know?" He said, obvious of what was to come  
  
"Cause you slept wit her last night didn't ya?" Cid blurted, he couldn't hold it in any longer.  
  
"You make it sound like I did something wrong, Cid" Cloud said, knowing that he couldn't deny it.  
  
"She sleep well?" Barret said  
  
"Hope so, got a tough day ahead of us." Cloud exclaimed, taking a spoonful of cereal. "Did all of you sleep well?"  
  
"Enough" was the majority of replies he received.  
  
"Morning" came a tired voice from behind them, a few mumbles from the rest of the group. Tifa obtained a bowl and walked up to Cloud to take a seat beside him, reaching for the milk and cereal box that sat on the table in front of him. "When do we leave?" she asked.  
  
"When your all ready." Said RedXIII, crawling up beside Barret.  
  
"you not having breakfast yourself RedXIII" Tifa said, reaching over to pet the Wild animal behind the ear.  
  
"Don't eat much, not unless it moves or has been decomposing for a few days." He said as he smiled at them. Everyone moved their bowl I front of them, but Cloud, who continued to eat his, attracting the attention of everyone else.  
  
"What?" Cloud said looking up at everyone, all with disgust on their face. "I'm not going to allow him to get me with that again!" he exclaimed. "Besides, I had to do it myself once in a time." Smiling at the reaction of everyone to what he said. RedXIII's grin widening.  
  
When everyone was prepared to go, Tifa locked the bar and put the key in her pocket. Every one had their own things to carry.  
  
"So which direction should we go first?" Yuffie said  
  
"Junon. We need a boat to get to the northern continent." Cloud said.  
  
"We coulda been there in no time if we 'ad me highwin' handy" Cid grumbled  
  
"Well, Cid, we don't have it, can you deal with that." Tifa exclaimed. "Because if you can't deal with that, then you shouldn't be here. I'm sure no-one would mined if you went home, you got a family and all."  
  
"Nah, I can't leave yea kids on yer own. Yea'd get killed out there without me." He replied, trying to sound cool under Tifa's pressure.  
  
"Good, lets get going, to Junon. First stop, Fort Condor." She said, looking round the group for any other ideas.  
  
"RRRRRight, onwards" RedXIII growled as the left Kalm for Condor.  
  
They were walking for about 4 hours before they seen the chocobo ranch, which brought a smile to everyone's faces.  
  
"Hey, Blondie, did ye not 'ave a gold chocobo in that there ranch" Barret pointed out  
  
"Yea, why?" Cloud said, curious at Barret's question.  
  
"Then why tha hell are we walking!" Barret shouted.  
  
"Do you really want to take the chocobo?" Cloud said, he already thought about this.  
  
"Damn straight I do!" said Barret, frustrated.  
  
"Look, I already thought of that Barret, the chocobo could carry three or four of us at a time, it'll have severe trouble carrying all of us." Cloud said, looking at Barret with satisfied eyes.  
  
"We'll why can't we try it, no harm in us trying it, right?" Barret said, slightly anxious.  
  
"What! No Barret, you'd kill the poor thing!" Tifa screamed at him, "It's only a bird!"  
  
"Sorry" Barret said, trying to calm the aggravated lady. "Jus' a suggestion, don't see anyone else proposing ideas."  
  
RedXIII was prancing ahead of everyone. He was the only one with energy to do so, even Yuffie didn't have the energy to keep up with the vigorous wild cat.  
  
"We'll head across the swamp today, should be across by sundown." RedXIII said, looking up at the sky for a while.  
  
"What about the Midgar Zolom." Vincent said, his head rising to look at the frantic beast. "Its hp is 4000, its mp is 348, and its level is 46. some of us haven't had a fight in a year.  
  
"That shouldn't be a problem for us, we defeated Sephiroth. Besides, all the monsters disappeared after meteor." RedXIII said as he leaped onto the swamp, feet sinking 3 inches.  
  
Cloud didn't feel right when Red turned to them. He reached for his sword and withdrew it, taking steady steps towards Red.  
  
"What's wrong Cloudy." Yuffie said, pondering Clouds suspicious acting.  
  
The ground started to shake; Tifa lost her balance and fell to her knees. Cloud could see in the distance dirt rise and a shadow as it gained on RedXIII.  
  
Cloud knew that the shadow was traveling at tremendous speed towards them. "RED! Move!" He shouted, jus catching his attention in time.  
  
RedXIII rotated his head over his shoulder to catch a glimpse of the dirt- slid heading towards him. Acting purely on instinct, RedXIII pounced with his immense leg muscles 20 feet in the air to get away from the Zoloms jaws as they clenched from underneath them, jus' barely missing him as the snake towered above them, even RedXIII's jump didn't reach the heights the snake reached.  
  
RedXIII landed right beside Cloud, sliding and spinning to face the menace, glower on his face. The snake almost got his tail but let go due to the flames intensity, he could feel as its venom ran down his tail, giving a quick whip to rid it.  
  
Cloud knew that this was going to come, the team would have to face terrors which others would not dare to face. 


	7. The Shadow Of The Zolom

note: thx for the reviews. especially Crescent-Wish-Forever. I take this as a turn to answer some reviews, first; it is RedXIII (my mistake.) not RedXI, second; Vince IS 27, not 50, I checked the book and the original website. :P. thx.

The shadow of the Zolom, Guardian of the swamp, covered the whole group. Cloud could feel the ground shudder as it hissed, venom tossed around as the tongue of the creature vibrated.  
  
Cloud's grip tightened around the handle of the ultimate weapon, glancing at everyone else to see if they were prepared, noticing Tifa still kneeling down, staring at the reptile.  
  
"Tifa! GET UP!" Cloud shouted to her, catching her attention, and that of the snake. The sound startled the Zolom, its head shooting down at him  
  
Cloud heard the snake's reaction to him, glancing over and lifting his sword in defensive position. The collision of the snakes head at his sword pushed his feet into the ground, the smell of dead flesh propelled at his face made him sick.  
  
The force the snake was applying on his blade was extreme; he could barely hold the snakes head away. He moved his sword swiftly to the side and jumped the opposite direction, jerking its head away from him.  
  
Cloud hadn't expected the snake to be that strong, he fought it before and it was nowhere near that strong. It was definitely not level 46 anymore.  
  
Cloud could see where the bullets from Barret's and Vincent's gun hit the beast, barely fazing it. The Colossal structure had nothing to fear from them and the sword of the ultimate weapon didn't even scratch it.  
  
Its head flashed upon Cloud again, catching him by surprise. He swung the blade at the side of its head as he barely stepped out of its path, finding it to just bounce of the scales. Cloud knew that the scales would be a bonus to the creatures strength, but he never would have guessed that they would bounce the ultimate weapon of them without even damaging it.  
  
Cloud seen the eyes of the creature as it scanned the movement of everyone in the group. He knew that their were only 2 places were he could get full effect from the attack.  
  
"Aim for its eyes!" he shouted, as the creature lunged at Tifa. Cloud knew that the timing had to be right, he dived at the creature, turning his blade to stab down on its eye. Cloud hadn't expected the tail of the Zolom to swing round and collide with him, he barely had anytime to block the attack.  
  
Cloud was flung across the plain. Tifa just missed the attack, without time to counter. The Zolom withdrew its head and lunged it again at Vincent.  
  
The creature's jaw slammed on top of Vincent, he had no time to get away and no way to defend the attack. Vincent was lost in the mouth of the demon.  
  
"Vince!" Yuffie shouted out, dashing at the creature, tears in her eyes. She pounced at the creature, crashing her conformer down on the creatures eye, causing it to pull its head up.  
  
Yuffie dropped of the beast and landed beside Tifa. Cloud could see from were he stood that she was fumbling in her pocket, taking out an Ultima materia. He could see Tifa stopping her from using it as he ran up to them,  
  
"Don't us that, you'll hurt Vincent as well." Cloud said running up to them,  
  
"But, but." She mumbled, she couldn't think straight.  
  
Cloud looked back at the creature as it stood above them, its head shaking vigorously side to side.  
  
"What the hell is it doing" Cid called, Venus gospel in hand.  
  
"I don't know, but it doesn't seem to like it." Cloud called over.  
  
A thump was coming from the creature; it stopped shaking its head. Suddenly its head dropped, crashing down onto the field beside Barret.  
  
"Holy shit" Barret shouted as he moved back from the beast. The thud got louder as the monsters head bobbed up and down, Cloud and everyone was already close to it.  
  
A scale of the creature's skull abruptly shattered. A claw and hairy hand came through the hole, followed by another, the hands ripping the Zolom's head in half. Out of the carcass came a demon, wings protruding from its back, casting a glance that would shatter your soul. Everyone immediately recognized it as Chaos.  
  
"Vince!" Yuffie shouted as the fiend's shape slowly morphed back to their friend.  
  
Vincent looked at everyone, one eye shut, and collapsed on his knees then falling on his face. Yuffie knelt down beside him and pulled his head up onto her, letting him rest. "Its Ok Vincy, we're here. Rest", smiling down at him. Everyone knew that it drained Vincent to sustain that immortal being. They decided to set up camp there.  
  
"Anyone hungry?" RedXIII called out, bits of Zolom flesh hanging from his mouth. "It's really not that bad"  
  
"We'll pass this time Red." Cloud said as he helped Vincent into a tent set up by Barret and Cid.  
  
"Why was the Midgar Zolom there anyway." Tifa said to Cloud as he emerged from the tent, "I thought all the monsters left after holy collided with meteor."  
  
"I don't know, maybe it also had to do with the weather. When there was evil roaming the world the monsters had arrived, causing evil to spread across the continents. Maybe there's a new evil in the world, causing the monsters to reappear, a stronger evil. My blade could not damage the scales of the Zolom." He replied, glancing down at his weapon, this was the ultimate weapon, how could such a foe be immune to it. It was forged by the stars itself.  
  
"Tomorrow we'll start across the swamp, jus' rest for now."  
  
Cloud stood outside the camp, waiting for everyone to go asleep, then, scanning the horizon he felt safe to sleep. He climbed inside his tent with Barret and Tifa after adding more logs to the fire. He crawled into his sleeping bag and lay there a moment then blew out the candle.


	8. Camping night

Cloud seen the gaze, again, from his foe. It smiled at him, causing him to shiver. The silver hair streaming down his face, his blade in hand. The creature he feared stood before him, raising his hand. Cloud could feel his hands follow that of his adversary, gripping the swords hilt.  
  
He could feel the intense heat that radiated around him, then a sudden coldness. The coldness increased as the scenery around him flashed to that of the crater, but the silver haired maniacal stayed, laughing as out of the snow came the figure, cloaked the same way as before.  
  
He seen the long barreled gun raise, he heard the sound of him as he laughed and mumbled a few things. Cloud actually heard the shrouded form say "Sorry it had to be this way", but he could barely work the rest out.  
  
Again, he seen the fingers slow movement back firing the gun.  
  
The flash broke his concentration, and he awoke sitting up, Tifa holding him.  
  
"Its Ok Cloud, it's only a dream, nothing more."  
  
"No tiff, it's not only a dream. I seen him, I seen him, alive as he used to be."  
  
"That's impossible Cloudy, We were both there, he is dead, there is nothing else to it. He couldn't have survived it." She replied, perplexed by Clouds antics.  
  
"I know, I know. But he did survive it, he not only survived it but he's stronger, stronger than he was before. Only he's not after meteor, he's after me." He motioned, grabbing Tifa by the arm.  
  
"Cloud, I think you need a cup of coffee." She said as she stood up outside of the tent, pulling Cloud out by the hand.  
  
Cloud followed the female as he went over to the fire and sat down, watching Tifa rummage through the bag. He was grateful that Tifa would do this for him, but she didn't believe him.  
  
He looked along the horizon, Catching Vincent, back turned to them, staring towards the swamp where the Zolom lay. Cloud walked over to him and set on hand on his shoulder as he stood beside him.  
  
"Why aren't you in bed?" he said as Vincent turned his head to him.  
  
"I guess I got my sleep. What are you doing up?"  
  
"I had the dream again, except it was more vivid." He answered as he turned his head to look at Tifa who was boiling the kettle over the fire then turning to him and smiling. "Cloud" Vincent said, after staring at Tifa too. "How do you know if someone likes you?"  
  
"Huh? Well, you don't, I guess. You could ask." He replied, wondering where this conversation was heading.  
  
"She likes you, it's clear. Everyone knows, your jus' to blind to see it."  
  
"Tifa? We're jus' childhood friends, nothing more. I think."  
  
"Cloud, the coffee's ready. Vince, would you like a cup.?" Tifa called over.  
  
"That would be great, thanks." Vincent replied, head turning back to the swamp for a moment.  
  
"Vincent, you seem to be have problems running through you head. Relax."  
  
"Your right Cloud." Vincent answered, heading over to the camp. Vincent couldn't stop thinking about various things, Chaos was the lost side of him, and even he feared him.  
  
He always hated turning into that demented freak, he feared he would hurt his friends. Friends, Vincent barely knew the word friend, he always traveled alone. After being released from his fate, he agreed to follow the group to the defeat of Sephiroth. But after that, he felt close to the group, they didn't treat him like a freak, they were the only one in years to make him feel welcomed.  
  
Cloud took a seat beside Tifa, taking the cup she offered him from her hands. Vincent, opposite Cloud.  
  
"Why are you up Vince. You should be resting, you had a hard day." Tifa said, looking at him, by the way he looked you wouldn't believe the person in front of her was tormented by demons that lurked inside him, feeding on his anger.  
  
"I already slept. Besides, Yuffie's creeping me out. I woke up and found her lying beside me. I'm jus' not that use to physical contact, unless it hurts." He replied, taking a sip from his cup, daring not to raise an eye.  
  
"Maybe she likes you, a girl like her needs someone to look up to, to love and cherish."  
  
"Another feeling I'm not use to. Are you talking about the way you looked up at Cloud, your knight in shining armor as you put it."  
  
"Uhh, sorta, not the same way exactly." She muttered, staring at Cloud for a breath second. "Look, you're stronger than her, you barely know fear. She looks at you when she's scared."  
  
Vincent looked away. He acted so fearless, but to be truthful, he feared feelings most. He never wanted to feel love, not again, not after Lucrecia.  
  
Cloud looked at the reaction of his friend "Vince, Yuffie likes you; you can't do anything about that. You could break her heart if you still hold feelings for Lucrecia, she's dead, there isn't anything you can do about that. If you could then don't you think I would have tried to bring Aeris back." Tifa was startled by the mention of Aeris, it's not like she didn't like her or anything, it's just that it came from Cloud. She thought Cloud was over her by now.  
  
"Aeris has been dead over a year now, there's nothing anyone can do about that, not even you Cloud. There is no need to think about her anymore." She blurted out, hoping to reassure Cloud.  
  
"I know that, but her death is on my hands."  
  
"No, her death is on Sephiroth's hands, not yours. And Sephiroth is dead n..."  
  
"No he isn't!" Cloud shouted at her, not meaning to upset her. "I told you, he's alive."  
  
Vincent had no clue what was going on, he looked over at Cloud and then Tifa, Cloud was looking at his feet, Tifa was looking at Cloud, eyes watery.  
  
"It's Ok Cloud." She said, moving up the bench towards Cloud and resting her hands around his waist.  
  
"I think, I need some time to think. Excuse me." he whispered, getting up on his feet, then walking towards the spot where Vincent stood the moment before. He looked up at the stars, mind wandering off again, then down at his mug. He drank the cup in one, then set it down on the ground.  
  
"I'm sorry, I didn't know I offended you." Was the sound from behind him, the sound of Tifa's sweet voice.  
  
"You didn't, I'm jus' edgy."  
  
She sat down beside him. "I, I want you to like me, it hurts when I do something stupid like this." She said, tear running down her face. There was a breath moment of silence.  
  
"I do like you, I jus' got carried away." He said with his most sincere voice as he moved over to her and embraced her, her cheek up against his.  
  
"Thanks Cloud," holding on to his hands, "You are my Knight in shining armor."  
  
She turned round to face him and put her lips on his cheek. Cloud's stomach fluttered as she held her affectionate skin up to him, her body heat sending sensations to his brain, he didn't want her to stop, then she turned back round to look at the stars, Cloud followed her movement too, silence saying more than words.  
  
Vincent had watched them for a moment and then thought about Yuffie, for some reason he could see himself doing the same with her. he liked the feeling of love, sure, everybody does, but it's the feeling of heartbreak that he hated. A feeling that you could only avoid by not falling in love. He finished his coffee, then, setting the cup down on the bench, headed back to the tent. 


End file.
